In less than a decade, Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood has grown from a subdued district fringed by its eponymous lake to a fortress for Amazon and the Allen Institute’s headquarters. As a result, the hood’s once quiet food and drink scene has proliferated to satiate the tech titan’s many employees and benefited the rest of us in its wake. One of the latest to open is from James Beard Award-winning chef and restaurateur Maris Hines: Young American Ale House. The gastropub’s menu highlights playful comfort classics with the local, certified organic emphasis Hines is known for.
Chef de Cuisine Marcus McHenry shares a recipe for one of the eatery’s best-selling dishes, a clam and oyster chowder cooked with not one, but two, local alcohols. “When cooking, everything is about balance,” McHenry says. “I like to add both beer and wine for the acidity, and to bring complexity to this dish.”
Because the chowder is cream-based, McHenry says the two acid-driven alcohols allow the flavors of the chowder to “be clean, while also allowing the seafood to come front and center.” Since the ale house highlights local beer on its 12 taps, the chowder deepens with a full cup of lager. “We wanted to get beer in as many things as we could, which made sense being we are an ale house,” McHenry explains. “So we did different amounts of beer and wine mixtures until it tasted just right. When it all boils down, it’s about flavor, balance and acidity.”
The chef recommends pairing with the Airfield Estates Sauvignon Blanc used in the recipe. “It’s dry, fruity with a lemon-lime flavor that balances well on the palate with this creamy soup,” McHenry notes. “It works perfect since we are already cooking with it! Why waste a perfectly good bottle of wine that has had a chance to fully breathe.”
Clam and Oyster Chowder
Recipe by Young American Ale House
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
2 shallots, minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound manila clams
1 cup white wine
¼ pound bacon lardons
1 cup sliced leeks
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced celery
8 cups diced potato
8 ounces Maritime Brewing Old Seattle lager
½ cup Airfield 2015 Sauvignon Blanc
3 cups clam juice
1 ½ quart milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 stick butter
¾ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup clam liquor
¼ cup oyster liquor (the juice left after shucking)
1 pound oysters, chopped
Directions:
On low heat, sweat the shallot and garlic in a large pot. Add clams and white wine, steaming until the clams open. Remove the clams, shuck and set aside, reserving any liquid from the pan in a bowl.
In the same pot, render the bacon on medium-low heat and cook until crispy. Remove the bacon and set aside, reserving 1 tablespoon of bacon fat. Turn the temperature to high and add leek, onion, celery and potato, cooking until they are tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the lager and white wine to deglaze, reducing by half. Add the clam juice, milk and heavy cream.
In a separate small pan, make your roux by melting the butter and adding flour. Once combined, cook on medium heat stirring constantly so you don’t burn it. Whisk roux into the main chowder pot and bring to a boil to thicken. Stir often to prevent scorching the bottom. Finish with the clam liquor, oyster liquor, clams and oysters. Adjust seasoning with salt and white pepper.
